Revesby’s Russo swimming for gold at 2016 Paralympics in Rio

Last week Revesby para-swimmer Sean Russo received the letter he had been anxiously waiting for — his ticket to Rio.

Sean Russo has been selected for the Paralympics in Rio for swimming. Picture: Carly Earl

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Last week Sean Russo received the letter he had been anxiously waiting for — his ticket to Rio.

The 25-year-old from Revesby was selected as one of 36 Aussie swimmers to compete at this year’s Paralympic Games in Brazil.

Russo, who is vision impaired, will compete in five S13 events including 200m medley, and 100m breaststroke, freestyle, butterfly and backstroke.

Sean Russo is getting ready for Rio, representing Australia in swimming at the Paralympics. Picture: Carly Earl

There are three classes for vision impairment at the Paralympics and S13 is the category for swimmers with the most vision.

This level of competition isn’t new to the young swimmer, who competed in the London 2012 Paralympic Games, narrowly missing a medal in his pet event, the 100m backstroke.

But the excitement is still as palpable.

“It’s a big privilege to be part of the team,” he said.

“I try not to be too caught up in the excitement, because I still have a job to do.”

While Russo was born with retinitis pigmentosa, which causes tunnel vision, he first started swimming to help his asthma.

It wasn’t until he was 11-years-old that his impaired vision was picked up.

“My parents just thought I was clumsy,” he said.

“But it was discovered when I was doing Little Athletics and I kept getting disqualified for going over the line for the track event.”

It’s fair to say he has come a long way since Little Athletics, winning bronze in the 100m backstroke at the IPC World Swimming Championships in 2010 and 2015.

The Paralympics begin on September 7.

Despite security and water pollution issues being reported from Rio, Russo said he is “not worried at all” about his trip.

“I’m sure by the time the Paralympics starts all the problems will be fixed,” he said.

The swim team will travel to Auburn University in Alabama on August 22 for some pre-games training before making their way to the village.